Johnson County Manager Hannes Zacharias says all he will do Thursday is “carry the clipboard” from county agencies to the county commission as they request funding for the prospective 2016 county budget.
In reality, the numbers on that clipboard will have a big impact on the pace and breadth of improvements proposed for both county parks and libraries.
As part of next year’s proposed budget, both the county parks and recreation district and county library system will ask commissioners for incremental increases in county mill levy rates—taxes assessed on every $1000 of property value. The hikes would help fund the completion of ambitious capital improvement plans that have been in the works for years.
“They’re not asking for money for the maintenance of their current operations,” Zacharias says. “They want additional funds to help pay for these improvements.”
The parks and rec district wants to develop 4,400 acres of unused park lands and improve existing park infrastructure at a projected cost of $255 million. Jill Geller, Executive Director of the parks and rec district, sees it as an investment in county residents’ well-being.
“I think the parks add a wonderful amenity to the community and also improve the health of our residents. There’s more and more research on the health benefits of being outdoors and active,” Geller said.
Meanwhile, the county library’s master plan lays out a 20-year vision that would add two new branches to the system, expand three other branches, and create a centralized hub for materials to be distributed around the county more efficiently. The library plans will cost roughly $400 million.
“This plan will create our library of the future,” Library Board Chairman Neil Shortridge says. “Our residents have always supported our libraries but they recognize that much of the system is out of date.”
Both the parks district and the library board have given commissioners multiple tiers of mill levy rate increase options. To fully fund the parks district’s plan, commissioners would have to approve a levy rate increase of 1.34. Fully funding the library’s master plan would mean a mill levy rate increase of 1.15.
The Johnson County website’s ‘Budget Blog’ clearly lays out how different property owners are currently taxed. The site also shows residents how they can calculate what mill rate levy increases may do to their taxes in the future.
It has been a while since either agency received mill levy increases. The Parks and Rec department last got one in 2004. The Library’s last mill levy increase was in 1994.
“It is unusual, especially in the recession,” Zacharias admits.
But Zacharias says Johnson County residents also want high-quality county services.
“They love our parks and love our libraries and want to make sure they are the best they can be.”
Eds note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the amount of acreage the parks and rec district wants to develop.
